| What is LEED? |
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The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria. Leading the industry in the movement for sustainable building is the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). Formed in 1993, it is comprised of over eight thousand members including federal, state, and local government agencies, colleges, environmental groups, manufacturers, trade associations, architects, engineers and builders. Through their combined efforts these agencies are trying to affect a shift in the construction paradigm. The USGBC employs a third-party certification system known as the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. This rating system uses four certification levels: Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum, each requiring a successively higher number of points. Points are achieved by meeting established criteria in several categories including site selection, water and energy conservation, material selection and indoor air quality. These levels of certification may be applied to six separate rating systems:
If you have any questions related to "Green" issues or about our involvement in Sustainable Building projects, please feel free to contact our LEED AP (Accredited Professional), Lynn Jackson, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . On April 27, 2009, the USGBC rolled out their latest upgrade, LEED Version 3. Some of the changes include: Harmonization: Precedent-setting and clarifying information from Credit Interpretation Rulings were incorporated into the rating system, and commercial and institutional rating systems have been consolidated and aligned. Credit Weightings: Points are now weighted depending on each credit's ability to impact different environmental and human concerns. Regional Priority Credits: Projects can now earn up to 4 additional credits for addressing regionally specific environmental issues. |




